Lithuanian Educators vist GTCS

12/09/2018

The General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) hosted a delegation of educators from Lithuania at its Edinburgh headquarters this week.

The visitors, who were a mix of university lecturers, education experts, and school teachers, were working on plans for developing their approach to teacher professionalism and registration in Lithuania. They visited GTCS as part of a tour of Scotland, during which they were set to visit Education Scotland, the Educational Institute of Scotland and representatives from Local Authorities including Headteachers.

They group were keen to hear about the GTCS’s approach to its Statutory Functions and Initiatives, particularly in relation to the Professional Standards set for teachers to register with GTCS and the organisation’s involvement in the probationary service completed by prospective teachers following their completion of a teaching qualification.

GTCS, in partnership with the Scottish Government, is responsible for the administration of the processes involved in the Teacher Induction Scheme (TIS), the guaranteed one-year training post completed by eligible students graduating with a teaching qualification from one of Scotland’s universities. TIS gives graduates the support to develop the skills and competences required to become a fully registered teacher in Scotland.

The organisation is also responsible for the administration of the Flexible Route scheme, which allows those who cannot commit to a full-time position five years to meet the standards required for Full Registration.

Ellen Doherty, Director of Education, Registration and Professional Learning at GTCS, met with the Lithuanian delegation, and said: “This was an excellent opportunity to share ideas and experiences with our colleagues from Lithuania. Our visitors were keen to discover more about GTCS’s central role in maintaining the quality of Scottish education through our support for the probation schemes and development of the Professional Standards. This visit was one of many from countries across the world who hold the GTCS and Scottish education in high regard and want to know more about how education works for children and young people here.”

The GTCS was the world’s first professional registration body for teachers in the United Kingdom, and one of the first teaching councils in the world when it was set up in 1965. Since then, GTCS has worked with education colleagues in countries across the world to help them to develop similar approaches to setting standards, regulation and encouraging and supporting professional learning in the teaching profession to achieve the best outcome for Scotland’s learners.